The Supreme Court on Thursday reserved an order on the bail petition filed by Ashish Mishra, son of Union Minister of State for Home Ajay Mishra Teni and accused in the Lakhimpur Kheri violence case in the Supreme Court.
Appearing for Uttar Pradesh Government Additional Advocate General Garima Prashad, told a bench of Justice Surya Kant and Justice J K Maheshwari, “It is a grave and heinous crime and (granting bail to accused Ashish Mishra) will send a wrong signal to society.”
The bench asked, “We are taking prima facie view that he is involved and he is an accused and not innocent. Is it the state’s case that he has attempted to destroy evidence?” to which the additional advocate general replied, “That has not happened till now.”
Dushyant Dave Senior advocate, who is appearing from the victims’ side said, “the grant of bail would send a terrible message to society, as it’s a conspiracy and a well-planned murder. I will show it from the charge sheet, He is the son of a powerful man being represented by a powerful lawyer”.
Mukul Rohatgi, a Senior advocate appearing for Ashish Mishra, strongly opposed Dave’s submission and said, “What is this? Who is powerful? We are appearing every day. Can this be a condition to not grant bail?” Mukul Rohatgi submitted that his client has been in custody for more than a year and the way the trial is going, it will take seven to eight years to complete it. He stated that Jagjeet Singh, who is the complainant in the case, is not an eyewitness and his complaint is just based on hearsay.
Further, Mishra’s advocate Mukul Rohatgi argued that “Jagjit Singh is the complainant and he is not an eyewitness. I am surprised that when a large number of people say we ran over people mercilessly, an FIR is registered on the version of a person who is not an eyewitness?” “My client got bail in the first instance. This is not a cock and bull story and there is truth in my story,” Rohatgi said, adding that his client is not a criminal and there are no past records.
On October 3, 2021, eight people were killed, including four farmers, in Lakhimpur Kheri district’s Tikunia, when a convoy of vehicles, including one belonging to Union Minister Of State Ajay Mishra in which Ashish Mishra was seated, ran over them on October 3, 2021.
The High Court had granted bail to Ashish Mishra in February 2022, but it was canceled by the Supreme Court which sent the matter back to the High Court for reconsideration. After hearing it again, the High Court rejected the bail plea in July last year, following which Ashish approached the Supreme Court.
